Next Generation Touchpad with Haptic Feedback Makes Control
Tasks Easier and Safer

AUBURN HILLS, MI--Nov. 11, 2013: How do you make the growing number
of safety and convenience features in a vehicle easy to operate so that the
driver is distracted as little as possible? Answers to this question are
among the core competencies of the international automotive supplier
Continental. Its experts in the human-machine interface (HMI) in vehicles
are currently pursuing a new path: they have developed a touchpad with
active haptic feedback. This is an input device with a touch-sensitive
surface and its primary purpose is to control screen menus. The inspired
feature of this touchpad is that it confirms a driver's action with tactile
pulses – similar to what you would experience with a button. "We see
a lot of potential in touch control. Together with active haptic feedback,
the touch principle is particularly efficient. This is confirmed in a test
study carried out at the University of Kassel," said Eelco Spoelder,
Manager of the Continental business unit Instrumentation and Driver HMI
during the VDI Conference, "The Driver in the 21st Century" held in
Braunschweig, Germany.

In the U.S. alone, The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA) estimates that there are at least 3,000 deaths annually from
distraction-affected crashes—crashes in which drivers lost focus on
the safe control of their vehicles due to manual, visual, or cognitive
distraction. And it estimates nearly an additional 400,000 are injured in
related crashes.

"The touchpad with active haptic feedback demonstrated a significantly
positive effect in the study," said Prof. Ludger Schmidt, Head of the
Human-Machine-Systems Engineering Group in the Mechanical Engineering
Department at the University of Kassel. "On average, a driver's gaze is
diverted away from the traffic 23 percent less when haptic feedback is
switched on. And the control tasks set were performed on average 33 percent
quicker than without active haptic technology."

These values were investigated using a driving simulator. The 32 study
subjects had to perform standardized lane-change maneuvers in accordance
with ISO 26022. At the same time, the drivers were expected to call up and
activate functions from the screen menu using the touchpad. Performing
secondary tasks at the wheel can significantly affect driving safety. The
longer the driver's gaze is directed at the screen, the longer the vehicle
is being "driven blind." The detailed results of the study were presented
at the 10th Berlin Human-Machine Systems Workshop.

Haptic Feedback makes for operating safety

The touchpad with active haptic feedback was positioned low down within
reach of the right hand. Its purpose is to operate a screen on the center
console. This split between screen and operation avoids hand-eye
coordination with an outstretched arm to control a menu using the finger.
Instead, the driver's finger, supported at the wrist, glides across the
touchpad without the driver having to see it. As relevant fields are
reached on the screen menu, they are optically accentuated – in a
similar way to a cursor. At the same time, the touchpad produces a tactile
mechanical pulse when a menu field is reached – also known as a
haptic search. If the driver presses the touchpad using a certain amount of
pressure while a menu field is selected, the instrument confirms this input
with an active pulse. "This process means that there is virtually no risk
of a driver inadvertently pressing something," explains Andreas
Bruninghaus, head of concept development for haptic controls and center
consoles at Continental in Babenhausen.

The touchpad with active haptic feedback is a new element of the human
machine interface in the vehicle, according to Bruninghaus. "It supplements
Continental's existing human-machine interface strategies, which also
include the active accelerator pedal and the head-up display. The greatest
possible benefit to drivers will be a holistic HMI concept that supports
drivers in their tasks in many situations. The touchpad with active haptic
feedback is an efficient enhancement of the operating options."

With sales of €32.7 billion in 2012, Continental is among the
leading automotive suppliers worldwide. As a supplier of brake systems,
systems and components for powertrains and chassis, instrumentation,
infotainment solutions, vehicle electronics, tires and technical
elastomers, Continental contributes to enhanced driving safety and global
climate protection. Continental is also an expert partner in networked
automobile communication. Continental currently has more than 177,000
employees in 46 countries.

The Automotive Group with its three divisions Chassis & Safety (sales of
approximately €7.0 billion in 2012, 34,500 employees), Powertrain
(sales of approximately €6.1 billion in 2012, 31,000 employees), and
Interior (sales of approximately €6.4 billion in 2012, 33,000
employees) achieved sales of approximately €19.5 billion in 2012. The
Automotive Group is present in more than 170 locations worldwide. As a
partner of the automotive and commercial vehicle industry, it develops and
produces innovative products and systems for a modern automotive future in
which cars provide individual mobility and driving pleasure consistent with
driving safety, environmental responsibility, and cost efficiency.

The Chassis & Safety division develops and produces electronic and
hydraulic brake and chassis control systems, sensors, driver assistance
systems, airbag electronics and sensors, windshield washer systems, and
electronic air suspension systems. Its core competence is the integration
of active and passive driving safety into ContiGuard®. The Powertrain
division integrates innovative and efficient system solutions for vehicle
powertrains. The comprehensive range of products includes gasoline and
diesel injection systems, engine management and transmission control,
including sensors and actuators, as well as fuel supply systems and
components and systems for hybrid and electric drives. Information
management is at the very heart of the Interior division, which provides a
range of products that includes instrument clusters and multifunctional
displays, control units, electronic car-entry systems, tire-monitoring
systems, radios, multimedia and navigation systems, climate control
systems, telematics solutions, and cockpit modules and systems.